


One Life, Together

by HiddenTreasures



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Episode: s04e13 Journey's End, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-25
Updated: 2019-03-25
Packaged: 2019-12-07 20:45:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18239993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenTreasures/pseuds/HiddenTreasures
Summary: After making their way to a little seaside inn, the Doctor and Rose slowly begin to clear the air and find their way back to the easy relationship they’d had before universes separated them.





	One Life, Together

**Author's Note:**

> This fic has been on my computer for God knows how long, but I found it and got inspired to finish it, and so voila! Enjoy :)

“I’ve only got one life, Rose Tyler.” Oh, how he’d missed saying her name. Missed the way the syllables felt on his tongue, and the way his hearts no longer squeezed in agony from missing her. Well.  _Heart,_  singular, he supposed. It squeezed in nervousness now as he forced himself to look into her eyes; he was more vulnerable than he’d ever been before. “I could spend it with you. If you want?”

He wanted to fall to his knees and beg her to accept him, to want him, to want to spend their forever together. But it was her choice. It would always be her choice.

“You-you’ll grow old at the same time as me?”

Her voice was soft. Incredulous. As though she couldn’t quite believe what he was saying. And he couldn’t blame her—he could barely believe what he was saying. Just a few hours ago, he’d been firmly in one body, overjoyed at the prospect of having Rose back, even while a piece of him lamented that he would get her back just to lose her again in a few decades.

“Together,” he answered, unable to help the smile at the idea of growing old— _him!_  Growing old!—with Rose.

She shook her head in disbelief, and he was horrified to see tears welling in her eyes. She was about to refuse him. About to tell him thanks, but no thanks. She was stepping up to him now, surely to say goodbye.

But no. Her hand trembled as she reached out and set it overtop his chest, where his singular heart was trying its best to hammer its way out of his ribs.

The warmth of her small hand bled through the fabric of his suit and sent a wave of calmness over him, as her touch always did. He swayed on his feet.

The TARDIS groaned from behind Rose, and she gasped a little and dropped her hand. He wanted to snap at his stupid ship… Only to remember it wasn’t his ship anymore. A new ache lodged itself into his chest, sharpening when the sound of the TARDIS pulled Rose’s attention away from him. She turned.

“We’ve got to go,” the other Doctor said tightly. “This reality is sealing itself off…forever.”

That word hung in their air, ringing between them with heavy finality.

The other Doctor turned away from Rose, and the Doctor could hardly believe it. How could he turn his back on the woman he—they—loved so deeply and completely? Didn’t she deserve more than that? Didn’t she deserve to make her own decision?

“But… it’s still not right,” Rose argued, her voice thin as she jogged after the retreating Doctor and Donna. Thankfully, they turned back ‘round to face her. “Because… the Doctor’s… still  _you_.”

“And I’m him,” he answered.

Rose looked lost. She sounded lost, and the Doctor wanted nothing more than to go to her and pull her into his arms. He was about to step towards her when she called them both forward. He saw the reluctance on the other Doctor’s face, and he realized that was panic in the other’s eyes. He’d wanted to make a clean break of it not for Rose’s sake, but for his own.

“All right, both of you, answer me this. When I last stood on this beach, on the worst day of my life, what was the last thing you said to me?” The Doctor ached with the memory Rose was dragging up. He’d locked it down for so long, never daring to look at it, lest his hearts—er,  _heart_ —shatter irreparably. “Go on, say it.”

“I said, ‘Rose Tyler’,” the other Doctor answered, making it clear he wouldn’t say anything more.

But of course Rose wouldn’t let him get away with that. “And how was that sentence going to end?”

 _I love you I love you I love you!_  he wanted to scream. But Rose wasn’t looking at him.

“Does it need saying?”

His hearts—dammit,  _heart_ —broke for Rose. He watched the incredulity and devastation on her face, before she forced it away and turned to finally look at him.

“And you, Doctor?” she asked, wary.

He was hyper-aware of the other Doctor, how he was staring at him with an intensity that crossed into jealousy and bitterness. He began moving towards Rose as she said, “What was the end of that sentence?”

He touched her arm, anchoring himself because his knees were suddenly wobbly. His heart was racing so fast he could barely catch his breath. He leaned in until his lips were at her ear. The wind whirled her scent all around him, making him feel like he was finally,  _finally_  home.

“I’ll love you even after our forever ends,” he murmured, his voice breaking.

He pulled back and looked into her eyes, begging her to believe him, to choose him, to stay. Her eyes scanned his face, but he wasn’t sure what she was looking for. He was about to reaffirm his eternal love for her when she reached out and grabbed his lapels, using her grip to pull him down as she lifted up onto the balls of her feet.

Their lips crashed together, and he could hardly believe it. Oh, he’d missed this. He’d missed  _her_ , and he never wanted to let her go again.

At that thought, he realized his arms were dangling uselessly at his sides, and so he lifted them to wrap around her waist, hauling her closer. She responded by sliding her hands to grasp at his shoulders, and gods above, she was actually pulling him in. She was actually holding him.

His mouth moved hungrily now, desperate to taste every inch of her he’d been deprived of these last few years.

Her arms let go of him, and he let out an undignified whimper, unable to bear parting from her. She smiled against his mouth, then angled her head to the side to keep them in the kiss as her arms gripped his biceps once more.

Irrefutably, this had to be one of the best snogs of his life.

Until she yanked herself away.

His ears were whooshing as he forced open his eyes to see what was wrong, but she wasn’t looking at him. She was staring off into the distance, and he turned his head to see what caught her attention. He looked in time to watch the TARDIS fade from view, from the universe, forever. Well that explained the whooshing noise.

His stomach bottomed out. Then his heart followed it when Rose ripped herself out of his arms completely to run towards the spot the TARDIS had been.

 _That wanker!_  He didn’t even say goodbye. Or let Rose say goodbye.

The Doctor licked his lips, which still tasted of Rose, and straightened. His heart was breaking, and he was certain Rose’s was too. He tentatively stepped towards her, where she was frozen to the spot and looking at the damp sand as if she couldn’t believe she’d been left behind.

He slipped his fingers between hers and was reassured when she gave his hand a squeeze, then began to massage his thumb with hers. She looked over at him, her face tense.

“Doctor?” she asked after a beat, and he hated the tremor of uncertainty in her voice.

But he forced his hurt not to show, and he relaxed his face into a small smile before he whispered, “Hello.”

Her face pinched off as more tears made an appearance, and he used their joined hands to tug her in for a hug.

“Oh, Rose.” He dropped her hand to wrap both arms around her and crush her to his chest. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Breathe, love. Breathe.”

“He left me,” she whimpered into his shirt.

“I know.”

“He just  _left_  me!”

The Doctor tightened his arms around her, not sure what he could say to soothe her breaking heart. If there even was anything he could say.

“Did you know?” she asked, her voice suddenly angry. “Did you know he would do this?”

She pulled away to glare at him. Her eyes were red-rimmed and her cheeks were damp with tears, but she looked murderous. He flinched away from her gaze, a ready lie on his tongue, but he caught himself before the denial could come out. Instead, he breathed out a sigh and hoped Rose would forgive him (and eventually maybe the other Doctor, too).

“I suspected,” he admitted.  _Because it’s what I would’ve done if he were me and I were him._

“And you didn’t say,” she accused. “You tricked me! You both tricked me!”

“That’s not fair,” he said quietly as pain and panic lanced through his chest.

“Don’t you dare talk to me about what’s fair,” Rose hissed.

“Well, would you prefer to be on the TARDIS?” he snapped, his temper rising in response to hers. “Would you feel better if  _I_  was the one left behind? ‘Course you would, because you don’t even think of me as the Doctor, do you?”

“Now you’re not bein’ fair! Of course you’re the Doctor!”

“Am I really, though?”

“Same memories, same thoughts, same everything,” she parroted back to him. “S’what you said, innit? Unless you were lying to me.”

Her anger was soon replaced by fear, and the Doctor sighed and rubbed a finger into his eyes. “I wasn’t lying. Sorry. I’m the Doctor. Really. Your Doctor.”

Rose huffed out a breath, the fight seeming to go out of her, and rubbed the heels of her hands into her eyes. “This is all so… fucked up,” she mumbled. Then she glared at him. “Why didn’t you just let yourself regenerate?”

She turned on her heel and strode towards her mother, missing the way his entire face crumpled.

oOoOo

The walk to the road was tense and silent, with Rose leading the charge. Jackie looked unsure about whether she should walk with Rose or the Doctor; she settled for keeping a few paces behind her daughter and occasionally tossing a few pitying looks back at him. He hated her for that.

The Doctor kept his head down against the gusting wind that brought in thick gray clouds that threatened rain, and instead made a game of trying to step in Rose’s footprints in the sand. Her impressions were much smaller than his own feet, and it was slightly awkward to shorten his stride to match hers, but still he did it.

Finally, they made it to the road and walking became easier now that they weren’t slogging through sand. They walked for miles and miles it seemed, with nothing but the roaring wind in their ears, before the Doctor glimpsed a small seaside town.

He followed the two Tyler women through the narrow streets until they made it to a rustic little inn. The elderly woman behind the counter seemed thrilled to see them, and the Doctor wondered if business was slow.

He hung back as Jackie took care of getting them rooms to rent, and he tried not to make it too obvious that he was watching Rose out of the corner of his eye. She had her arms crossed over her chest and kept her back to him, which infuriated and saddened him all at once.

 _Look at me_ , he wanted to demand.  _See me_.

“I’ve got us two rooms,” Jackie said a minute later. “An’ I called Pete. He’s gonna work on getting us a zeppelin to London as soon as he can. But there’s a storm blowing in, so we might be stuck for a few days.”

“Great,” Rose said bitterly. “What rooms?”

“101 and 102,” Jackie answered. “Just down the hall there. I figured you and—”

“Sounds good,” Rose said, interrupting her mother. She took the second key from Jackie, and turned to face the Doctor. His hopes were dashed when she pressed the key into his palm and said, “See you in the morning.”

Then she turned and strode down the hall without another look at him or her mother.

Jackie frowned at Rose’s retreating form, then she winced at the Doctor. “Give her a bit of time. A lot’s happened.”

“Yeah,” he said hollowly. “See you in the morning.”

Never mind the fact it was barely suppertime.

He brushed passed Jackie and caught up to Rose, but he breezed right past her without a second glance then opened the door to his rented room and slipped inside.

The room was dark and cold, making him feel even lonelier than before. He turned the heat up, but it didn’t ease the chill that seeped down to his bones.

He didn’t know what to do, and Rose’s words kept bouncing around in his head.

_Why didn’t you just let yourself regenerate?_

He was wondering that himself, too.

Boredom and restlessness soon overtook him. There was nothing in the room to entertain himself with, apart from the television. He wanted to be with Rose, to catch up with her on everything that had happened over their last several years apart, but she obviously didn’t want to be with him.

That was fine. He was fine.

But the room was very much not fine. It was too quiet and too empty, and so the Doctor grabbed his key card, shoved it into his pocket, then exited his room. He ignored the woman at the front desk, asking him if everything was all right, and instead darted outside, where the sky was dark and ominous. Thunder rumbled in the distance.

_Why didn’t you just let yourself regenerate?_

He ground his teeth together and shoved his hands into his pockets as he took off in a random direction. The sidewalks were all empty. The entire town seemed empty.

Still, he walked on. The sound of crashing waves was his only companion on his aimless journey. He could smell the salt from the sea, as well as impending rain. He would have to head back soon unless he wanted to be caught in a deluge, but he couldn’t stand the thought of going back to his cold, empty room.

_Why didn’t you just let yourself regenerate?_

Surely all of his problems would have been solved if he’d ignored his vanity and let himself regenerate into a new body. He would have his TARDIS back, and he would have his Rose. His Rose who didn’t hate him or resent him.

(Never mind the fact that without having aborted his regeneration energy, Donna never would’ve become the Doctor-Donna and saved the multiverse.)

In this perfect scenario in his head, he had his two best friends with him in the TARDIS, traveling with him forever.

(Never mind the fact Rose’s and Donna’s forever didn’t even come close to his.)

A gust of wind buffeted him, swaying him to the side a few steps before he regained his balance. He really ought to head back now.

_Why didn’t you just let yourself regenerate?_

With a sigh, he raked his hand through his hair and continued walking forward, away from the inn. Just a little farther, he told himself. Then he’d go back.

He continued on until he reached the outer edges of the town. And instead of turning back, he walked along the perimeter, telling himself he’d eventually get back to where he started. He was taking the long way ‘round, was all.

He’d been walking for well over an hour by the time the first raindrop fell. It splattered, cold and wet, onto his cheek as a bolt of lightning lit up the sky. He paused, watching the way it splintered through the clouds and seemed to strike into the heart of the ocean before winking out. It was beautiful.

Thunder boomed overhead so loudly the Doctor thought he could feel it in his chest.

Another raindrop pelted on the top of his head. Then another. And another.

Soon the heavens opened up, and fat, cold raindrops were falling everywhere, creating tiny rivers in the streets almost instantly.

“Bugger,” he muttered as a chill rocketed up his spine.

His hair was soaked in seconds and hanging in his eyes. He impatiently brushed it back and set off at a jog towards the inn.

The woman at the front desk looked horrified when he strolled in.

“Sorry,” he said cheerfully. “Went a bit farther than I thought.”

Then he turned away from her and strode down the hall to his room, where he saw Rose sitting on the floor, her back to the door.

She jumped up the moment she saw him. “Where the hell have you been?”

“I went for a walk,” he said, trying not to think about the reasons—good or bad—Rose had for being outside his door.

“In the pissing rain?”

“It wasn’t pissing rain when I left,” he answered, shrugging. Pleased as he was to see her, he wanted to get inside and out of his cold, wet clothes.

“You should’ve told me,” she muttered, crossing her arms.

“Why? You couldn’t wait to get away from me earlier. Didn’t think you’d care if I’d gone,” he said. He knew it was a low blow, and he felt guilty when she flinched.

“Sorry,” she mumbled. “It’s just… I’m so…”

She shrugged helplessly, and he felt that sentiment in his very bones. It was comforting, if only a little, to know that Rose was as lost as he was.

“I’m dripping on the carpet,” the Doctor said after a few beats of silence.

“Oh. Right.” Rose’s shoulders were hunched as she moved away from his door.

“D’you want to come in?” he asked before she could walk to her own room.

“D’you want me to come in?” she retorted.

“I always want you,” he said quietly.

Her cheeks flushed red, but she nodded. He rummaged through his pocket for his room key, then let them in. He was glad he’d switched the heat on before he left as he walked into an almost stiflingly warm room.

He went into the loo for towels, and he worked on drying his hair as he grabbed an armful and walked back to Rose. He dumped the towels on the foot of the bed, then sat down on them and toed off his shoes. His socks were damp, and he peeled those off too.

He wiggled his cold toes and stared at them intently as Rose sat down beside him.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” she said softly. “I didn’t mean what I said. Y’know… about letting yourself regenerate instead.”

“It would’ve made things easier,” he said, shrugging.

“Yeah, ‘til we all died in Davros’s Reality Bomb,” she replied.

He said nothing.

“I don’t know what to do, Doctor.” He finally turned to face her, but she was staring at her fingers as she wrung them in her lap. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to feel. I’m feeling  _everything_ , and it’s just… it’s so much.”

The Doctor could easily understand that.

“It’s like… I’m  _furious_  at the other Doctor for leaving like that. And I’m hurt that he didn’t say goodbye. But I’m also hurting  _for him_  ‘cos today can’t have been easy for him.”

“Letting you go… saying goodbye to you again was one of the hardest things he’s ever had to do,” the Doctor said quietly. He couldn't imagine the pain of finding Rose only to lose her mere hours later.

Rose sniffled.

“I’m worried about him,” she admitted. “I just… I want him to be okay. No. I want better than that for him. I want him to be  _happy_. Really, truly, properly  _happy_.”

“He will be. I promise,” the Doctor answered. “Hey.” He nudged his elbow into her side. She peered up at him through damp lashes. “I  _promise_. It will be hard at first, but he’ll heal. He’ll travel and find new friends and slowly this emotional wound will heal for him.”

A tear dripped down Rose’s cheek, and she brushed it away.

“Despite my anger and my hurt, though, I’m happy,” she whispered so softly, like she was revealing a huge secret. “I really am happy, Doctor. I get to stay with my family. And you. I’ve got you. My Doctor.”

She smiled at him then, a small, fragile thing. But still. She smiled.

“I’ve missed you,” she said.

“Oh, Rose.” A lump lodged in his throat, and he moved his hand to cover hers. Her skin was warm against his rain-chilled fingers. “I missed you too. So much. I—” His voice died on him, and he swallowed through his dry mouth and rasped, “I never want to be apart from you again.”

“We won’t,” she said fiercely. “I promised you forever, remember?”

How could he ever forget?

He nodded dumbly and threaded their fingers together.

“And… and you said you’d spend your one human life with me,” Rose said. “So we’re stuck together, you and me.”

The surety in her voice bolstered him, and he brought their twined hands to his mouth to brush a kiss to her knuckles.

“Forever,” he vowed.

She gave his fingers a squeeze, then her weight shifted closer until her hip was pressed to his and she leaned into his side. She rested her head on his shoulder. “I love you.”

The words sent an ache through his chest. A good ache. The best ache.

“I love you, too,” he replied. “I’ve loved you for so long.”

“I know,” she said. She turned her head to look up at him. “Even before. Even though you never said. I knew.”

The Doctor rested his cheek on her forehead, then tilted his head to press a kiss to it.

Rose took her hand away from his and brought it up to the back of his neck. She kept his head where it was and stretched up and brushed a kiss to his lips.

He hummed and exhaled through his nose at the soft press of their lips. This kiss was much gentler than the frenzied one on the beach, but it was still perfect.

“Can I stay in here with you tonight?” Rose murmured against his mouth, caressing her fingers across the nape of his neck.

“’Course you can,” he rasped, relieved and exalted. “Always.”

She smiled into the kiss, then shuffled beside him. She brought her knee up under her and pivoted towards him, using the better angle to deepen the kiss. She sucked his bottom lip into her mouth and scraped her teeth across it, sending a chill that had nothing to do with the cold shuddering down his spine.

He let out a muffled groan against her mouth as he grappled with where to put his hands. When he went to wrap his arms around her waist, he lost his balance and began falling backwards onto the mattress. He squeaked in surprise, but then giggled when he heard Rose laughing at him.

She followed him down until they were both laying on their sides. Then she buried her fingers into his hair and hauled his face close to hers.

“Your hair’s shorter,” she mumbled around his mouth. She scraped her nails across his scalp as she tugged on his hair. “At least in the back.”

“Yeah, been experimenting with different styles,” he replied, not particularly wanting to talk about his hair.

“I like it,” she said. Then she hooked her leg over his hip to pull him impossibly closer.

He whimpered but followed willingly. At least until her chest pressed against his, causing her to shudder.

“Wait. I’m gonna get you wet,” he said, realizing he was still soaked.

“Isn’t that kinda the point?” she teased.

All coherent thought left him as his blood rushed from his brain to below his belt.

“I… you… we… what…?”

“Stop thinking so hard,” Rose said. She reached down and took his hand from where it was fisted into her jacket at the small of her back. She guided it between them and set his open hand on her chest, a few inches above her breasts. “Are you okay with this?”

“Gods yes,” he gritted out.

“Okay then,” she said with a relieved smile. “Me, too. It’s just like old times, yeah?”

“Yeah,” he agreed, even though in his old body, he could regulate his hormones better so he could keep more than one thought in his head while touching her breasts.

Kissing Rose again was the most incredible experience in the universe. In the  _multiverse_. He never wanted to stop. He wanted to hold her in his arms for the rest of their lives and never let go.

She seemed to have the same idea. She wrapped her leg tighter around his hips, hauling him closer.

Their lower halves tangled restlessly, rocking and grinding together, while their lips and tongues tasted and teased each other. It was as if they’d never been apart. Their bodies still knew and recognized each other, and it was like coming home at long last.

Their hands grew bolder, touching and rubbing and pressing to bring forth the sweetest of sounds from each other’s throats. The whisper of clothing and skin and their muffled sighs and moans and pants were the only sounds in the room. Apart from the giggles when they tried to tug the Doctor’s sodden trousers down his legs and he got stuck, the wet fabric clinging to him like a second skin.

But soon enough they freed him, and his suit jacket and t-shirt fell to the floor as well. As did her own shoes and socks, trousers and jacket, shirt and underthings.

“And you always said I wore too many layers,” he panted when he fumbled with her bra clasp.

“Shut up and kiss me,” she ordered.

So he did. And she kissed him. Dozens and dozens of searing little kisses to his face, his neck, his chest, anywhere she could reach as her hands clutched his bum.

They shuddered when they joined together, and they clung to each other desperately as they moved, writhing and rocking and crying each other’s names as they found their pleasure.

It was over far too quickly, to the Doctor’s slight embarrassment, but she’d finished as quickly as he did. In any case, he was glad that he hadn’t left her unsatisfied. They could take their time later, when they’d rested.

As he traced absent swirls and circles onto Rose’s lower back, he realized that they had all the time in the world ahead of them. He truly had forever with her.

“I love you,” he murmured, pressing a series of kisses to the curve where her neck met her shoulder.

“Love you, too,” she said sleepily.

“I’ll love you forever,” he vowed, lightly trailing the tip of his nose up her neck and jawline to pepper kisses to the sensitive skin beneath her ear. “Even after our forever ends. Even when the universe has decayed into nothing, I’ll still love you.”

“Who knew you were such a sap?” she teased, but her eyes were shining and she was beaming.

He smiled back and nuzzled his nose against hers.

She then heaved a heavy breath that didn’t sound like a sated, blissful sigh.

“You okay?” he asked.

“I will be,” she answered, and while it wasn’t particularly what he wanted to hear, he was glad of her honesty. “A lot’s happened. And I’m still sorting through my thoughts and trying to figure out how I can be so happy and so upset all at the same time.”

The Doctor hugged her closer, trying to offer whatever comfort and support he could.

“I understand what you mean.”

Rose pulled back from his arms to look up at him. Her brow was furrowed.

“Are  _you_  okay?” she asked.

He shrugged, and pulled her back into his arms. When he couldn’t see her face anymore, he whispered, “Being human’s odd. My chest feels a bit funny, a bit empty. And the TARDIS…” His voice choked off. His oldest companion of nearly a thousand years, gone.

“I’m sorry,” she croaked.

“Yeah. Still. I can grow a new one. Shouldn’t take more than a few years.”  _I hope_ , he added silently. “But I’ve got you, so all in all, not too bad.”

“Oi!” She poked his belly, and he breathed out a soft laugh.

After a few minutes of silence, Rose asked, “Will you stay with me the night?”

“Seeing as you’re technically intruding upon my room,  _you’re_  staying with  _me_.” Rose didn’t say anything, and a quick glance up at her gave the Doctor a good enough view of her face. It was open and vulnerable. “’Course I’ll stay.”

“It’s just… before. You’d often leave my room after, and I’d wake up by myself,” she said. “And I didn’t mind, ‘cos I know you didn’t sleep much and you had TARDIS repairs and things. But now you’re human and you need to sleep. And I need to know I’m not alone, Doctor. There were so many nights I’d dreamt I was home, and you were with me, but when I’d wake up…”

The Doctor tightened his hold on her. He knew those dreams all too well.

“I’ll stay the entire night,” he promised. “Neither of us is ever gonna wake up alone again.”

Rose nodded to herself, then reached down for the duvet they’d kicked to the foot of the bed. She hauled it up to their shoulders and nestled under the covers, closer to him.

The chill in the air was gone. The room was pleasantly warm now, and they’d generated plenty of heat beneath the sheets, creating a cozy nest for them.

The Doctor’s eyes grew heavy and, with a parting kiss to Rose’s brow, he allowed them to slip shut.


End file.
